I am hoping to learn more about how High Probability Selling can be applied to the job search and interviewing process. While reading the book I was continually struck on the applicability in this area – have you and/or your colleagues considered this? If so, is there any specific information you may have or could offer in this area?

When I read ‘Josh’s Story,’ it seemed to me to be more focused on the Prospecting part of the process. Also in demonstrating competency as related to a sales-oriented position.

While I agree that High Probability Prospecting is valuable (particularly in identifying job opportunities that are unadvertised), my greater interest relates to those opportunities for which a job advertisement/posting already exists.

I would like to discover more about how High Probability Selling can be applied to the overall hiring process, and in particular, selling yourself to a hiring manager (and others involved in the hiring decision). Are there further more in-depth resources available in this area (i.e. the Selling and Closing part of the process)?

Yes, there are more in-depth resources that cover the Selling and Closing parts of HPS when applying for a job that is posted.

A good place to start is to study the HPS Book and read more of articles on the HPS Blog. After that, we offer training in the form of group workshops and/or private coaching.

When applying for a job that is posted, the odds are pretty high that they want to hire someone for the job, but not 100% certain. Therefore, it is worth confirming this with a direct question about want, which should be asked on the phone before meeting with them.

Ask, “Do you want to hire someone for this job?” If they answer Yes, which is very likely, ask them why. Then continue with the steps of the HPS process as shown in the book. Make sure you ask the conditional commitment question (it’s in the book) immediately after you have set the appointment. Remember their answer.

If they say no or maybe to the question about want, it is probably not worth proceeding with them.

A course on how to use High Probability Selling to find a job may be a valuable addition to the training that we offer. Most of the details can be found in the HPS Book, but they are not presented in that context. I’d like to hear your thoughts. Do you want to start a conversation about this here on this blog?

I used HPP and started prospecting..I reached a middle mgr type on my list..who responded positively to my ‘offer’ and set me up to interview with one of her unit mgrs for an inside sales rep position..when I got there I sensed the unit mgr didn’t seem thrilled to be interviewing me..anyways..she asked me the usual type of questions..my responses were probably ok..but nothing special…than I when she asked if I had any questions..I took out my own list of questions AND wrote down her answers.which I think may have offended her..I didn’t get the job

I think I didn’t recognize she was in control..not me. I don’t think my list of questions, nor me noting her responses helped me, plus if she didn’t really want to interview me..than probably meant it was going to be maybe a little harder to make a favorable impression..

What was your prospecting offer? Were you prospecting for an interview, or were you prospecting for a job, or was it something else?

When someone prospects for a job, they ask questions that help them determine whether the interview is worth going on or not.

For instance, if you had gotten the name and phone number of the person who would be interviewing you, you would have spoken with that person in advance. You would have asked the kind of questions that would have revealed that the unit manager was not thrilled to interview you.

In High Probability Prospecting, we ask a question about want. “Is that something you want?” or “Do you want to hire someone like that?”

If they say yes, we ask why. If we are satisfied with their answer, then we move on to setting up the appointment.

And then one more question before we go. A very important one. We call it the Conditional Commitment Question. “When we meet, if what I show you meets all of your requirements, what will you do?”

Thanks for your response. I thought I was prospecting for a job, but I suspect I was satisfied with an interview. Or at least assumed getting the interview meant I was prospecting for the job also..in other words..BOTH were necessary.

But I can see from your questions..that gaining the interview probably didn’t mean much..if I didn’t know if the unit mgr wanted to interview me in the first place..

Let me ask you this..if the middle mgr didn’t want to let me contact the unit mgr BEFORE the interview..would you have cancelled the interview?

Or might there been another way to handle that?

And did you think my list of questions and note taking was a bad idea?

Yes, an interview is almost always necessary before you get a job. However, it matters how you get there. Doing whatever it takes to get the interview can reduce your odds for getting the job.

Answering your first and second questions. If the person arranging the meeting did not want me to speak with the interviewer before the interview, I would count that as a negative, and I would consider that along with all the other things I would discover by using the HPS process. If there were too many negatives compared to the positives, I would cancel the interview.

This is very difficult to do for a beginner. We teach our students to always ask the questions in the HPS Discovery Process, and to always remember the answers. Then do whatever they feel like doing. With experience, feelings change.

Having a written list of questions and taking notes works very well with High Probability Selling*. I won’t say anything about the list of questions you asked, because I don’t know what any of them were.

*With one very important exception. No paper or pencil visible while conducting the Trust and Respect Inquiry.

A good place to start is to re-read the chapter titled “Discovery/Dis-Qualification” (which is Chapter 8 in most editions of the book), and to think about how each question might be modified so that it applies to a job search situation. For instance, the question in the book that asks “Why do you need this product” would be changed to “Why do you need to fill this position?”

Start with the discovery questions that are the easiest for you to translate into the job search and interview situation. Get the experience of what happens when you do that.

Many people find that asking some of these discovery questions before the interview/appointment is worthwhile.